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Bennett plans final solo production

Published:Thursday | March 30, 2017 | 11:05 AM
Douglas Bennett
Christine MacDonald-Nevers
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Douglas Bennett is planning a concert which is on par with the best so far. He has produced all of the previous 26 Jamaica Junior Theatre (JJT) concerts and expects the upcoming one will be his last solo production. It will feature mainly songs from musicals, probably the great Broadway musicals which the Jamaica Musical Theatre Company (JMTC) and the JJT staged over the years.

Bennett was musical director for both companies.

The current JMTC director, John Waite, told me that few of the JJT's musicals have been locally written and he issued a call for local playwrights and composers to create Jamaican works.

Bennett spoke with pride of the 500 to 600 youngsters trained for the JJT shows to date, stating, "we've never had a bad concert."

He elaborated: "They get musical help from me, acting help from the director and dancing coaching from the choreographer. We tell our youngsters we want them to develop the three performing arts specialities." Many of them are now performing professionally.

The next JMTC concert will be at Alhambra Inn on Sunday, April 2. It will be produced by Christine McDonald Nevers, a company member and leader of The Jamaican Folk Singers. Titled The Highest Praise, the show begins at 5:30 p.m.

- M.R.